Taj versus Tyrus:“Should Tyrus start over Taj?” is one of the biggest questions about the Bulls right now…which probably explains why they’re a sub-.500 team. But after a hot three-game stint after his return, Ty has been struggling. He was woeful against the ‘Wolves, as foul trouble 5 limited him to 22 minutes. He finished with 9 points 3-for-7, 5 boards, 2 steals, 3 blocked shots and a game-high 6 turnovers although several of those TOs came in garbage time.Meanwhile, Gibson had 13 points 4-for-8, 9 rebounds and zero turnovers in his 23 minutes. The reality is, Gibson is the more steady and consistent player, while Thomas is the more effective and impressive game-changing defensive force. If only there was some way we could merge them into a single player…

via A timely win: Bulls 110, Timberwolves 96 » By The Horns.

Tyrus Thomas is Amir Johnson is Tyrus Thomas.

I’ve been a supporter of Taj Gibson. He came into a hard situation and has made the most of it, while everyone screams he sucks. He’s old. He has no jumper (even though it’s fallen for most of the season). He doesn’t rebound. He sucks. He sucks. He sucks.

Tyrus Thomas has been the occasional golden calf of this site. I wish nothing but the best for Thomas and hope he becomes a productive player. But I do have some questions which Bulls fans are a little too close to home to answer.

Why is it that two different coaching staffs over four years have elected to keep Thomas’ ass chained to the bench? Okay, Scott Skiles is a wackaloon that’s too much of a hardass and hates puppies. I get that. I watch Luke Ridnour play tons of minutes. I understand. But then for VDN’s crew to do the exact same thing? Oh, VDN sucks. Well, that’s fine, but you’re telling me with Del Harris on the bench last year, with all those assistants, and in such desperate times, that there’s no reason that Thomas hasn’t escaped the bench’s gravitational pull? There’s got to be a reason. Misunderstood by two different coaching staffs?

The component with Taj Gibson is frightening to me, in that I can see why they’re opting for him. He plays hard, he does what they want, he efforts towards doing what they’re looking to do. Thomas is the superior talent, but he doesn’t play well with the others. They’re role players, and Gibson knows his role. I can understand Bulls fans dismissing this, because the team’s not winning. It just seems to me that there’s got to be a point where you let him go and pray it doesn’t come back to haunt you. Because Thomas could turn into an explosive Josh Smith Jr. clone. Or he could go elsewhere and be stuck on the bench all the same.

We’re so far into Thomas’ pro career, and we still know almost nothing about him other than “he can jump really high.”